Living in Belize - Pretention Rears its Ugly Head

By Kristi Rifenbark

I recently attended a new event in the small town of Corozal located in Belize where I am currently living. The event was “ Art in the Park” and it was a unique event for Corozal.

Most of the expats here are retirees so since there are not many tourists coming through, there are not a lot of places around town which showcase the art of local Belizean artists. This was the second monthly Art in the Park event (I missed the first) and the atmosphere was surprising. The event was located in the central square of town and a local jazz band was playing in the background. Artists could set up to show off their wares without charge as long as they set up their own space within the park.

The vibe was exciting – expats and locals alike mingled in the square enjoying each artists creations and many people seemed to dress up for the occasion. The event was established one month ago by a group of expats who wanted to bring an idea that is prevalent in North America to Belize. The suggestion was received positively rather than many others that had been proposed which were pretentious and degrading because of a way of thinking that is far too common among expats in Corozal – that Belizeans are not capable of first world standards of creativity, intelligence and focus.

I was thrilled with this Art in the Park concept, but there was one thing missing – no beverages were being served. This was a minor detail but in each similar Art in the Park event I’ve ever been to, wine, beer or some type of beverage was sold and it seemed – on a Saturday evening – that this would be a natural addition to the event.

The topic came up in casual conversation between my mom and another expat, “wouldn’t it be perfect with a glass of wine?” and the answer that followed crushed all my optimism for the purpose of this monthly event, “It wouldn’t be a good idea to sell alcohol because the Belizeans wouldn’t be able to handle it.” The woman almost whispered to my mother. What?!?

This is precisely the type of attitude that doesn’t need to be imported in to countries like Belize as North Americans and Europeans continue to choose these locations to retire. It creates a resentment among local Belizeans towards foreigners such as me which has become a standard preconception that many local people have when meeting a foreigner for the first time.

Yes, Belize is a third world country; yes, they don’t have a lot of opportunities that someone in America, Canada or Britain has but this does not give people the right to make brash assumptions that every Belizean is ignorant, uncontrolled or inferior.

Sadly this topic comes up regularly in many forms among the expats who come to the restaurant my mother and I run here. We chose to come in to this new country and give people here the same consideration we would give anyone else at home in the United States. This in turn allows the opportunity for the local people to share their customs and culture with us.

We try very hard not to propagate these pretentious attitudes and I hope as I continue to make my home in Belize I will meet more and more expats who have that same attitude. It will make life richer when we all can learn from each other and not segregate ourselves so much. Belizeans and expats alike coming together to create events such as Art in the Park is fantastic and collaboration should be encouraged, but without kid gloves.

For more stories from Belize visit http://scottysbarandgrill.com/belizedragonfly/

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